Jim Martin

A clear need to be told his book's brilliant makes Mandelson look even more pathetic, if that were possible.

Utterly irrelevant in the broad sweep of history unfolding, of course, but it seems Mandelson sent his book to Epstein, who slated it brutally. Mandelson prickly in response - the only mail we've seen that hasn't been gushing.

I've annoyed literally everyone - pleasing.

Christmas decorations and tree now coming down. We felt February was late enough.

I know. To read it was that long ago was genuinely crushing.

London Book Fair heading to the Excel. I remember the last time it was there (OMG 20 years ago). People fucking hated it. They were still moaning about it in the year of the Icelandic Volcano. www.thebookseller.com/news/the-lon...

You can destroy that corrupt, fag-stained wreck.

Smash.

oh hello

EXACTLY

Lazy and a refusal to be told what to do by scripture.

Still not taken the Christmas tree down.

#strong.

Dyeing son's hair. Had a tott up and realised it's 35 years since I last did mine. Slightly soul-crushing, but anyway.

Jenrick ... he truly is shameless. A corrupt Vance wannabe. Imagine ending up like that.

While objectively the Jenrick news is of course hilarious, you do have to grudgingly hand it to Badenoch for firm, swift decisiveness that has holed her opponent well beneath the waterline. Jenrick has now been comprehensively sunk.

This will be the first of many. Lazy institutions taking short cuts, getting caught, then lying. Always the cover-up that leads to heads rolling.

A colossal scandal breaking. West Midlands police used AI to 'sex up' grounds to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans. AI invented a load of stuff. Police went ahead with the ban anyway. Chief Constable of West Midlands now will have to resign for lying about it. Amazing.

@wiwildlife.bsky.social hello, Steve. We would like to use one of your photos in a forthcoming book - would you mind dropping me an email so I can discuss the details with you? It's jim.martin@bloomsbury.com. Thank you.

oh alison.

First day back at school. Numerous crying children at the school gate. I shared their sorrow.

West Ham really are hilariously bad, aren't they. Wolves have scored as many goals in one half as they have points. Both teams doomed to the drop.

Leicestershire officer committed gross misconduct over mushroom foraging report Former PC Christopher Vickers was found to have committed gross misconduct over how he issued and recorded a community resolution report.

Inexplicably, one of the lead stories on the BBC website. Magpie Inkcap is toxic. None of this makes a lick of sense.

BBC News - Leicestershire officer committed gross misconduct over mushroom foraging report - BBC News
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Post-Christmas deep dive into Guinness Book of Records reveals that the world's oldest person, Surrey phenomenon Ethel Caterham, is three YEARS older than anyone else alive. What a woman.

But I was so cold, Steph. So cold.

I left at half time due to misery caused by the biting cold. Missed four goals and a 95th minute winner. Football eh. @isthmianleague.bsky.social

In other news, dreamt I had to re-sit my GCSE Maths. 35 years on, psyche still scarred.

Today I am at the Kent Coast derby - @ramsgatefc.bsky.social v @fifc.bsky.social. missed kick-off due to queues. Ground packed. Programmes long since sold out. Spicy.

Starting to wonder whether the monarchy will survive this.

Looking forward to the full suite of HarperCollins stories starting to bubble out.